The top 5 stories in hospitality this week 09/05 - 13/05
What were some of the top stories in hospitality this week? Here's our pick.
- Costa has taken some of its high-sugar drinks off the menu and pledged to cut the amount of added sugar in its beverages by a quarter by 2020. The Red Berry Fruit Cooler has been removed from stores while others have been reformulated with new ingredients.
- Edwardian Hotels has unveiled its first artificially intelligent employee - a chatbot called Edward. Guests can order room service and even send complaints via text to the virtual concierge.
- Leon is set to launch its first American site after profits jumped 46 per cent to £2.26m last year. The expansion comes with a heavy investment in staff, with baristas trained in the martial art of Wing Tsun to speed up their coffee making skills.
- Team UK has failed to win a place in the Bocuse D'or finals in Lyon in 2017 after chef Anthony Wright came 17th in this week's European heat. Wright was only announced as UK finalist in December after original candidate Christian Grebenstein from The Ritz dropped out.
- EAT is the latest high street brand to expand its vegan menu to cater to growing customer demand. The chain has also debuted a new open kitchen design ahead of launching its largest ever site in London Liverpool Street station later this year.
- For a full run-down of this week's news click here.
